first and second ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

page seven

“i've waited long enough for this, hisoka.”

just when you thought you'd finally reached the bottom of the tower, after all those pathetic traps you and hisoka encountered following your victory in the riddle battle with prisoner number eight. 

"i'm not here as an examiner this year. instead, i'm here for revenge. all i cared about last year was nothing but to kill you." a man sat in a dimly lit room, surrounded by flickering candles. as he stood, his gaze locked onto hisoka, completely ignoring your presence. in his hands, he wielded two curved blades. 

your eyes narrowed. his words made it clear—this was personal. the scars on his face told the rest of the story. they were hisoka’s handiwork. now, he was back to settle the score. 

"for the sake of my wounds, i'll redeem myself today!" he grinned psychotically, his grip tightening on his weapons. 

"it seems to me that this is a personal grudge. i shall excuse myself." with lightning speed, you vanished from hisoka’s side, reappearing effortlessly atop the stair-like structures where the candles burned. the magician simply watched, amusement flickering in his eyes. 

"you can help him for all i care, i'll kill you both." the man spun his blades in an attempt to be intimidating, but it was hardly impressive. 

“you wouldn't be so sure about that,” you remarked, unimpressed. after all, you could end him in a single strike.

“you're playing with two blades.” however, hisoka was slightly caught off guard when his opponent tossed both blades into the air and swiftly pulled out another pair. 

“infinite quad wielding!” with a flick of his wrists, he hurled the first two blades toward hisoka. but the magician, quick on his feet and even quicker with his reflexes, dodged effortlessly. 

wasting no time, the scarred man rushed forward, aiming to catch hisoka off guard. from your vantage point above, you watched as the two airborne blades struck—one embedding itself in hisoka’s shoulder, the other slicing into his waist. yet, despite the hits, hisoka’s body bent and twisted unnaturally, his flexibility almost mesmerizing. 

"i'm not done yet!" the scarred man unleashed another relentless barrage, his blades seeming to have a mind of their own, relentlessly chasing every movement hisoka made. 

"no matter which way you go, you can't run now! i'm going to cut you into pieces by tossing my blades all over the place!" his psychotic grin never wavered. 

yet, hisoka remained eerily calm, his expression neutral, as if the fight had already lost his interest. you couldn't help but wonder—how would he strike back? because right now, all he was doing was dodging.

"go ahead and roll on the floor in agony! after i'm done with you, i'll continue with your woman!" you scoffed. who did he think he was, believing he could lay a hand on you? and hisoka’s woman? how absurd. 

"die, hisoka!" just as he thought he had him cornered, hisoka effortlessly caught the incoming blades with his bare hands. his opponent's confidence shattered in an instant, forcing him to jump back in shock. 

"of course, it was a little hard to dodge all these," hisoka mused, his voice dripping with amusement.

"so, i just had to stop them." then, in true hisoka fashion, he dragged his tongue along the edge of the blade, his eyes gleaming with mischief. if his goal was to provoke his opponent, it was working. 

the scarred man broke into a nervous sweat. it had taken him half a year to train himself to catch those flying blades from all angles—yet hisoka had done it effortlessly, as if it were child’s play. 

"how about this? it's easier than i thought."  hisoka began spinning the blades in his hands, mimicking his opponent’s technique with unsettling ease. this time, it was his turn to grin psychotically. 

"i'm so sorry that you wasted a lot of effort," he taunted, his voice laced with cruel amusement.

"damn you! even if you can stop those, how about your woman?!" with that, he spun one of his blades in his hand before tossing it into the air—this time, aiming directly at you.

hisoka’s amusement flickered for a brief moment, caught off guard by the sudden shift in target.

however, before the blade could even pierce your skin, you caught it effortlessly with your bare hand, stopping it mid-air. both men froze, their eyes widening in disbelief. 

"if you want to hit me, you’ve got to be quicker than lightning," you said nonchalantly, spinning the blade between your fingers with ease. 

hisoka burst into laughter, utterly amused and satisfied, while the scarred man stumbled back, shouting incoherent curses—his confidence crumbling before your eyes. 

without hesitation, hisoka flicked his wrist and sent the blade soaring through the air. in one swift motion, it met its mark—slicing clean through flesh and bone. 

as the man’s head hit the floor with a dull thud, the candles flickered violently before being snuffed out, plunging the room into darkness.

"number 44, hisoka, is the first to pass the third phase. his time was 6 hours and 17 minutes." 

"number 406, y/n, is the second to pass the third phase. her time was 6 hours and 17 minutes." 

he had only placed first because he walked out before you, with you following right behind. the bottom of the tower was eerily empty, and with nothing else to do, you figured you might as well sit on the floor. 

your thoughts drifted to gon and killua. you believed without a doubt that they would pass this phase—along with kurapika and leorio. 

attempting to put some distance between yourself and hisoka proved useless. the moment you sat down, the magician followed, settling beside you. though there was space between you, his presence was impossible to ignore.

"we certainly have a lot of time before phase three ends, and there's no one else here aside from us." you raised a brow. what exactly was he trying to imply? hisoka rested his chin on his palm, a lazy smirk tugging at his lips.

"so, what shall we do to pass the time?" his tone was playful, but there was always something unsettling about the way he spoke. you exhaled through your nose, unimpressed.

"we wait." he chuckled.

"how boring. surely, you can think of something more entertaining." you closed your eyes and leaned on the wall, completely ignoring him.

"don't sleep at me, y/n." you bristled, irritated. you weren't trying to sleep; you simply wanted to meditate for a while. but, of course, with him, that was impossible. 

your eyes snapped open, and you turned to face him. he was grinning slyly, clearly enjoying the way he got under your skin. 

"well then, humor me. what do you think of eternity?" you asked, your tone sharp yet curious. hisoka’s smirk widened, clearly intrigued by the question.

"eternity, you say?" he mused. though, you could tell he was a bit curious about why you’d suddenly asked such a deep question.

"a long, endless stretch of time... or maybe just a concept that people like to cling to."  he tilted his head, his gaze locking onto yours with an intensity that felt almost suffocating.

"just a concept that people like to cling to, huh..." 

as the god of eternity, you weren’t sure if you should be offended by his words, but then again, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. 

however, hisoka’s answer made you pause, deep in thought. it triggered memories of your past decisions—the vision hunt decree, the closure of Inazuma to the outside world. all of those actions were taken in the name of guiding your people toward what you believed was the true path of eternity. 

but now, you couldn’t help but see it for what it was: a mistake. 

many of your people hadn’t understood your choices, and, in hindsight, neither did you. you had tried to control time, to impose an eternal peace, but in doing so, you had forgotten the value of freedom, of change. that was a mistake. and though it took time, you had learned from it, grown from it.

"what about you? what do you think of eternity?" 

hisoka's voice cut through your thoughts, a touch of curiosity in his tone. it seemed he was genuinely interested, perhaps because your seriousness about eternity had piqued his attention. 

"eternity... is not as simple as it appears. it's not merely the endless continuation of time. the true challenge of eternity is not the passage of time, but what it asks of you as you watch everything around you change, while you remain the same." 

your answer was vague, but it carried the weight of experience—one that he likely couldn’t comprehend. hisoka chuckled, clearly entertained.

"sounds lonely, or maybe it's just boring."  you met his gaze, expression unreadable.

"perhaps. but sometimes, it’s the price you pay for holding onto something that never ends." hisoka’s grin widened, but there was a flicker of something deeper in his eyes, though he quickly masked it with his usual playful demeanor.

"interesting. seems like you've got quite the philosophical side." you didn’t say anything more, knowing that hisoka would never truly understand—at least, not in the way you did.

"and oh, y/n, i would like to fight you," hisoka declared, his eyes dancing with amusement and excitement, like a predator circling its prey. you hummed thoughtfully, nodding slowly, as if you were contemplating the request. 

"tell me, have you ever been struck by lightning before?" you asked, your tone casual but loaded with meaning. hisoka raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. he understood that you weren’t asking out of curiosity, but rather to imply something much deeper. 

"indulge me, do you plan on striking me with one?" he replied, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. 

you didn’t respond right away, allowing the tension to build. hisoka’s playfulness was evident, but you could tell he was waiting to see just how serious you were about this 'fight'.

"i am merely asking. i'm a combatant, i take pride in fighting with a weapon," you said, your voice steady, though there was a certain edge to your words. 

it was both a truth and a lie at once. true because you were an exceptional fighter, having honed your skills for countless years, but also a lie because you would not hesitate to unleash your divine power when the situation called for it. hisoka’s grin widened as he caught the shift in your tone, sensing the underlying truth.

"is that so? i can't wait to pin you down and have you at my mercy." you didn’t respond, your gaze fixed on the space ahead of you, deliberately ignoring his taunt.

his words might have been provocative, but you were used to his games by now. he might want a fight, but you weren’t going to give him the satisfaction of a reaction.

finally, the two of you sat in silence, the stillness stretching between you. after many hours, a door creaked open, revealing another triumph candidate for this phase. 

"third place, number 301, gittarackur. twelve hours and two minutes." 

the man jittered and rattered as he entered, glancing around the room. his eyes quickly landed on you and hisoka sitting on the floor. 

"i figured that you've already reached the finishing line," he said, addressing hisoka directly. his gaze shifted to you next. he could tell you weren’t asleep, despite your eyes being closed. there was a calm energy around you that suggested you were very much aware of everything happening in the room.

as you opened your eyes, you met his reddish-brown gaze, but you quickly looked away—not because you were intimidated, but simply because you couldn’t find any reason to engage in a staring contest with him. 

however, his eyes followed you, unwavering. hisoka, ever perceptive, noticed the way gittarackur's gaze lingered on you. a smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth as he recognized that familiar glint in the other man's eyes. 

interest. 

it was a look that hisoka himself wore often, one that spoke of curiosity and the thrill of something unexplored. he knew exactly what it meant.

    ┌ ╌ ╌ ╌ ╌  ㅤ °ㅤㅤ 𝒪𝒪.   .ㅤ     ╭◜
      *       ㅤ            ㅤ                              ╎
ㅤ         ㅤ           to be continuedㅤ       ❀

notes : please excuse any grammar errors, as this has not been proofread or edited.